on the broadcast tonight, a big storm bringing big trouble along th east coast. rain, wind, floods and flight delays from north carolina all the way north to maine. the mean season in politics gets nastier with charges of infidelity. something close to a fistfight. and they're just getting started. the secret tape that drove a young mano take his own life and the two fellow students who may have driven him to it on the internet. "education nation." the parents who went to extremes to protect teachers whose jobs were on the line. and leading man. remembering one of the greats. tony curtis. "nightly news" begins now.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening. it's as if a monster storm hopped on i-95 and drove it right up the east coast. last night at this time it was in miami. it has rocketed north, skirting the atlantic. a relentless water pump. we're coming to you from washington tonight where the potomac river, not far from here, is dangerously high, within sight of the national monument. streets are flooded all over the region. the winds are high enough to have already caused damage and it's still motoring north and there's more on the way. nbc's tom costello starts us off in chevy chase, maryland tonight. tom, good evening. >> good evening to you. in fact, the east coast has been struggling through drought conditions, but today it got hammered. it started out with heavy rain, then flash flood and tornado watches from the outer banks of north carolina all the way north

to new jersey. it was the dead of night when howling winds and the heaviest rains in months swept through the mid-atlantic. flooding neighborhoods, homes, roads, and making a mess of the morning rush. in metro washington, it caused one city bus to slam into another, injuring 26 passengers, including eight high schoolers. >> neck pain, back pain, minor lacerations and abrasions. >> reporter: the d.c. area is expecting seven inches of rain by the time this moving out tonight. >> we've got many creeks and streams out of their banks. >> reporter: in myrtle beach, south carolina, the water has much to have city in a stand still. >> hopefully it will drain off in the next day or so, but right now we can't get out. >> reporter: in north carolina, state troopers blame the weather for a traffic accident that killed three. the weather channel's julie martin is in wilmington, north carolina. >> this region has seen close to 22 inches of rain since sunday

and more to come tonight. that's not only a four-day record, but more rain that hurricane floyd produced back in 1999. >> reporter: meanwhile, a reporter in new jersey. >> here they're expecting two to three inches of rain before morning. >> reporter: up and down the atlantic seaboard, the surf is dangerous and airport delays common. >> they canceled my flight due to weather and i'm supposed to leave tomorrow morning at 5:50. >> reporter: back live here in chevy chase, maryland. we're expecting the rain to pick up tonight and die off later tonight. this region has been thirsty for rain but we didn't need it all in one day. >> tom costello starting us off tonight. tom, thanks. a big change very close to the president. white house chief of staff rahm emanuel will announce tomorrow that he's leaving his job to go home and run for mayor of chicago, hoping to replace the

retiring incumbent richard daley, replacing rahm emanuel will be washington veteran pete rouse, currently a senior obama adviser and capitol hill veteran, whose introverted style could not be more different from the volatile and famously profane rahm emanuel. with the midterm elections getting close, the increasing noise is making noise tonight. the voter anger being channeled by various candidates for office. tonight, opponents of the gop nominee for governor of new york are say he behaved like a thug in a piece of videotape that rocketed across the internet today. our own kelly o'donnell is here with us with all of it. >> reporter: good evening. there were nasty accusations flying back and forth and a confrontation that got really personal. that candidate, carl paladino, has admitted his own infidelity and just accused his opponent of cheating with no proof. that's what set off this fight.

but the bigger picture is how many voters and candidates have been losing their cool. anger management is not required or even expected this year. >> you're his bird dog. >> reporter: carl paladino unloaded on a reporter with a list of grievances in his race for new york governor. >> you send another goon to my daughter's house i'll take you out, buddy. >> how are you going to do that? >> reporter: around the country, boundaries keep getting crossed as candidates act out voter's pent up anger. >> i will hit the ground running. >> reporter: in maine, a candidate for governor lashed out at the president. >> you're going to be seeing a lot of me on the front page, telling obama to go to hell. >> reporter: and democrats have boiled over, too. >> the gentleman will observe regular order and sit down! i will not!

>> reporter: in this anger fueled political environment -- >> you know what? it's people who raise their voices and yell and scream like you that are divide thing country. we're here to bring this country together, not to divide it. >> reporter: analysts say voters will choose to ignore personal flaws or questionable credentials. >> when voters want to make a statement about their discontent, they will cross a lot of hurdles to do it, no question about that. >> reporter: first-time candidates still get hit with old school political attacks. in california's race for governor, republican meg whitman has been and of employing an illegal immigrant in her home. gloria allred says the woman knew she was undocumented. >> this is a typical political stunt led by gloria allred. >> as soon as somebody starts name calling me, i know essentially i've won the argument. >> reporter: leveraging voter anger may help some outsider candidates win. but can it do the job? >> it's going to be a challenge

for many of these outsider candidates to transition to washington and be effective. some of them will, and some of them won't. >> reporter: we're seeing when some of the candidates who show less than civil behavior get called out, they don't give the usual clarification or apology. paladino, for example, he defended himself, said he was passionate and he didn't back down at all. we're finding anger itself is enough justification. >> and we've got kell over a month to go. kelly, thanks. former president jimmy carter has arrived here in washington tonight after spending the past two nights in an ohio hospital being treated for a bad viral infection. upon his release today, he thanked the staff of cleveland's metrohealth medical center. he was returned there by ambulance tuesday after feeling sick during the flight, but emerged today carrying his own briefcase in fact. he's resuming his normal schedule of meetings here in the nation's capital tonight, he turns 86 years old tomorrow.

relations between the united states and pakistan may be at a new low tonight, and that tension is not a good thing for the u.s. strategy against terrorism. pakistan has now blocked a vital supply route into afghanistan after a helicopter strike killed three pakistani troops along the border. pakistanis say it was a nato chopper that unleashed that strike. our own john yang is on duty tonight in kabul. john, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. tonight, general david petraeus, the top u.s. commander here, has reached out to officials in pakistan to offer his condolences for the deaths. but nato officials aren't yet ready to accept responsibility. pakistan wasted no time responding to the death of these three soldiers, killed at a border post in pakistan's tribal region by apache attack helicopters. the choppers were supporting ground forces in afghanistan, who thought they spotted insurgents firing mortars.

nato officials say the apaches took small arms fire from inside pakistan. >> operating in self-defense, the aircraft entered into pakistani air space, killing several armed individuals. >> reporter: within hours, pakistan blocked u.s. and coalition supply trucks heading into afghanistan. late today, more than 150 trucks were backed up in the khyber pass. the border crossing is on a vital supply line. it handles a s about 80% of the military's supplies bound for bases in afghanistan anti-american sentiment is strong in pakistan. today, the pakistani prime minister pressed the issue. another official wondered whether the west was an ally or an enemy. >> are you fighting a war or are you in war together? >> reporter: the pakistani

partnership is vital to the war effort. since 2001, the united states has given pakistan's military more than $10 billion to help it fight insurgents. fueling tensions between the two nations, cell phone video has surpassed purporting to show pakistani soldiers killing blind folded civilians. today, military officials told nbc news they're investigating and suggested the videos were staged to discredit them. tonight, nato officials say that border crossing would have to be closed for some time before troops begin to feel the pinch. but one told me they are actively looking for a way to bypass pakistan with those supplies all together. brian? >> john yang at our nbc news bureau in kabul tonight. john, thanks. a grim story in the news today in this country for the fourth time in the last few weeks, a teenager has taken his own life after being taunted and humiliated for being gay. in this case, a young man was recorded via hidden camera in

what he thought was private was being played out over the internet. it combines the era over oversharing with the ultimate cruelty. our story tonight from nbc's mike taibbi. >> reporter: he was an exuberant student and gifted musician who graduated high school with honors and scholarships. but the body of 18-year-old tyler clemente was pulled from the river just days after his classmates secretly videotaped him during a sexual encounter with another man and streamed that video live. three days later, he reportedly wrote on his facebook page, jumping off the g.w. bridge, sorry. but there's a growing chorus of voices saying this is incidents of cyber gay bashing. >> that's really am plyified and changed this unpleasant

behavior. >> reporter: in one survey, 85% of gay students reported being verbally harassed. 40% physically harassed. and 19% physically saumted. in september alone, three other teens were mocked for being gay or perceived to being gay took their own lives. 13-year-old seth walsh of california and billy lucas of indiana hanged themselves. >> his life was intended because of intolerance and hate. >> life gets better. >> reporter: relationship columnist dan save j, who's gay, says getting past the hate is hard but not impossible. >> when a gay kid commits suicide, what he's saying he can't picture a future with any joy in it, a future worth toughing it out for. and i want gay kids to know that they can have a happy, fulfilled life, and experience joy. >> reporter: this week at rutgers, project civility was

launched, an effort to improve interpersonal relationships. >> we're trying to create a campus where everywhere is safe. >> reporter: too late for tyler clemente. mike taibbi, new jersey. when our broadcast continues in a moment, "education nation." you know how teachers have been under attack lately, tonight we meet parents who were willing to go to battle for the teachers. later, remembering one of the great leading men, tony curtis.

words alone aren't enough. my job is to listen to the needs and frustrations of the shrimpers and fishermen, hotel or restaurant workers who lost their jobs to the spill. i'm iris cross. bp has taken full responsibility for the clean up in the gulf and that includes keeping you informed. our job is to listen and find ways to help. that means working with communities. restoring the jobs, tourist beaches, and businesses impacted by the spill. we've paid over $400 million in claims and set up a $20 billion independently-run claims fund to cover lost income until people impacted can get back to work. and our efforts aren't coming at tax-payer expense. i know people are wondering-- now that the well is capped, is bp gonna meet its commitments? i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. i'm gonna be here until we make this right.

and we're back with tonight's "education nation" report, part of our network wide focus on schools. tonight, a story about the power of parents who saw good teachers about to lose their jobs and

were determined not to let that happen. our own kristen welker has our report from california. >> raise your hand if you did bubbles today. >> reporter: her title is first grade teacher. but for susan, this is much more than a job. >> i'm doing what i love. >> reporter: but last spring, she became a victim of california's budget crisis. one of 107 teachers in the school district who was told her position was on the chopping block. her pink slip came in the mail. >> i opened it up and i said, well, here it, is i'm official, i don't have a job next year. >> reporter: the news was equally devastating for the education of her john a.j. is her top priority. >> i thought at the time that means my son will be going to a class with 30 kids instead of 20 kids. >> reporter: bigger classes meant less one on one time, so she and two other mothers made it their mission to save each and every job.

>> we were going to lose our sons and daughters' teachers. >> reporter: they launched an aggressive grassroots campaign, asking parents to make donations, encouraging teachers to take furlough days and in eight weeks, they raised $2 million and saved all 107 teaching jobs. >> i thought to myself, oh, my gosh, we did it. >> reporter: the success is catching on. and now parents in other communities are learning they also have the power to improve their child's education. deanna lives in union city where 35 teaching jobs is at risk. now she's trying to achieve what the cupertino parents did. >> it's going back to the grassroots approach. >> reporter: they are celebrating but say it's only a temporary fix. >> we need to elect officials that will add slow kate for education. >> reporter: but for 6-year-old

a.j., what his mom achieved is everything. it turns out susan is his first grade teacher this year and the reason he loves school so much. kristen welker, nbc news, cupertino, california. wild ride on wall street today. the dow jumped more than 100 points off the opening bell, then fell back to close down just over 47 points. the bigger story, the market had its best september in 70 years. if the same could only be said about the rest of the economy. when we come back, a discovery that raises the odds of finding life somewhere out there. what had happened in central harlem was failure became the norm. the schools were lousy... the healthcare was lousy... gangs were prevalent. olence was all over. families were falling apart. you can't raise children in a community like that. people had been talking about things, but not doing anything. hi, mr. canada... how are you? i'm doing great, how 'bout you? right here on 119th street. if we could fix this block, then we could fix the next block, then we could fix the next block... we promised parents, if your child stays with us, i guarantee you that child

is going to graduate from college. failure is simply not an option. the sixty...the seventy... the eighty... the ninety-seven blocks which ends up being 10,000 children. we start with children from birth, and stay with those children until they graduate. if you really want to have an impact that is large, you will get there going one step at a time. there is no act that is too small to make a difference. no matter what you want to do, members project from american express can help you take the first step. vote, volunteer or donate at membersproject.com. like medicare. this year, like always, we'll have our guaranteed benefits, and with the new healthcare law, more good things are coming:

free check-ups, lower prescription costs, and better ways to protect us and medicare from fraud. see what else is new. i think you're gonna like it. ♪ you struggle to control your blood sugar. you exercise and eat right, but your blood sugar may still be high, and you need extra help. ask your doctor about onglyza, a once daily medicine used with diet and exercise to control high blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. adding onglyza to your current oral medicine may help reduce after meal blood sugar spikes and may help reduce high morning blood sugar. [ male announcer ] onglyza should not be used to treat type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. tell your doctor if you have a history or risk of diabetic ketoacidosis. onglyza has not been studied with insulin. using onglyza with medicines such as sulfonylureas may cause low blood sugar. some symptoms of low blood sugar are shaking,

sweating and rapid heartbeat. call your doctor if you have an allergic reaction like rash, hives or swelling of the face, mouth or throat. ask your doctor if you also take a tzd as swelling in the hands, feet or ankles may worsen. blood tests will check for kidney problems. you may need a lower dose of onglyza if your kidneys are not working well or if you take certain medicines. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about adding onglyza. extra help. extra control. you may be eligible to pay $10 a month with the onglyza value card program. big tv anniversary tonight. "the flintstones" have turned

50. that theme song didn't come along undid their third season. the classic was the first animated program in primetime and many have forgotten over the years it was based on the black and white classic "the honeymooners." so happy 50th to fred, wilma, the whole cast and crew. a massive recall tonight by fisher-price. 10 million items, including tricycles, highchairs, toy cars, some of the products have caused injuries including the like the barbie models. you can find a list of all the recalled items on our website, nightly.nbc.com. you may have heard the news, astronomers are excited because they think they found a place that could be a lot like home. it's a planet about 20 light years away, by that's practically nothing in astronomer terms and it's more

like earth than anything else found thus far outside our solar system. that's why this discovery has planet watchers so excited. >> we're barely on the way to the moon or mars, much less the nearby stars. but it offers us some glimmer of hope for a universe in which we're not alone, but joined bier life forms, possibly even intelligence. >> the astronomers are calling their discovery a goldilocks planet, not too cold, not too hot, possibly just right to sustain water and perhaps life. and it's nice to know if we screw this place up badly enough, there's a place we can all go. we're going to take a break. when we come back, a brilliant career. remembering tony curtis. ♪

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[ laughing ] [ boy laughs ] ♪ to know, know, know you after this we're gonna get ice cream. can we go get some ice cream? yeah. ♪ and i do ♪ and i do ♪ and i do seems like we've been saying goodbye to too many of the people who have entertained over the years. tony curtis has died. he was 85. he was the son of a tailor in the bronx. hearse first known for his good looks, then his talent. he was durable, prolific, unique and moviegoers loved him.

tonight, nbc's george lewis has a look back. >> reporter: when you think of tony curtis, one of the immortal images of him in drag opposite jack lemmon in "some like it hot." >> what are you afraid of? nobody is asking you to have a baby. >> reporter: as an actor, he was not afraid of taking on risky roles. >> you can't go lynching me. i'm a white man. >> reporter: in "the defiant ones" playing a white, racist convict janled to a black man, he was nominated for an academy award. >> we gave them a hell of a run. >> reporter: curtis fought to get equal screenplay for portier. he turned out to be a really good actor. born bernard schwartz to parents in the bronx, he used those good looks to leap from poverty to stardom. >> don't fight it. relax.

>> reporter: but early on, critics ridiculed his misplaced new york accent. >> will you close your eyes and concentrate? >> reporter: his first of six wives was janet leigh. they are the parents of actress jamie lee curtis. tony curtis became an artist in his latter years, saying he used painting as part of his therapy to recover from addictions to alcohol and cocaine. >> i knew i was going to die if i continued, but i didn't know how to stop. >> reporter: and as for his legacy, after 150 films -- >> you've got to die before they say something nice about you. >> reporter: actually, he'll be remembered for a whole lot more than that. george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> and that's our broadcast for this thursday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams reporting tonight from our washington bureau. we hope you'll join us again tomorrow night. good night.

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